How to decompose this fraction 3/6

Which word best describes the author's tone in this excerpt from "that spot" by jack london? i don’t think much of stephen mackaye any more, though i used to swear by him. i know that in those days i loved him more than my own brother. if ever i meet stephen mackaye again, i shall not be responsible for my actions. it passes beyond me that a man with whom i shared food and blanket, and with whom i mushed over the chilcoot trail, should turn out the way he did. i always sized steve up as a square man, a kindly comrade, without an iota of anything vindictive or malicious in his nature. i shall never trust my judgment in men again. why, i nursed that man through typhoid fever; we starved together on the headwaters of the stewart; and he saved my life on the little salmon. and now, after the years we were together, all i can say of stephen mackaye is that he is the meanest man i ever knew. a. excited b. ironic c. indignant d. playful

Buck did not cry out. he did not check himself, but drove in upon spitz, shoulder to shoulder, so hard that he missed the throat. they rolled over and over in the powdery snow. spitz gained his feet almost as though he had not been overthrown, slashing buck down the shoulder and leaping clear. twice his teeth clipped together, like the steel jaws of a trap, as he backed away for better footing, with lean and lifting lips that writhed and snarled. read this passage. explain what the conflict shows about buck and spitz.

Which statement best describes the intended aesthetic impact of this excerpt?